Toothbrush



April 20, 1943. G. ULVICK TOOTHBRUSH Filed Aug. 4, 1 940 gjwumvto'p Gauges 4 ULVIEIK Patented Apr. 20, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFKIE TOOTHBRUSH George Ulvick, Minneapolis, Minn. Application August 4, 1940, Serial No. 351,372

3 Claims.

My invention relates to toothbrushes of the character wherein a fountain is supplied within the handle of the brush and a passageway leads from the hollow handle to the bristles of the brush.

A feature resides in the peculiar formation of the handle which forms the fountain for the liquid dentifrice and wherein the construction of the handle is such that it may be grasped by the hand and held firmly while being used to brush the teeth without having any effect upon the discharge of the dentifrice from the fountain in the handle. When a supply of the dentifrice is desired, it is only necessary to squeeze the side wall or walls of the brush while the brush portion is held in a downward direction and the side wall or walls will bend inward to direct a pumping action against the liquid dentifrice in the handle, causing a small portion of the dentifrice to be discharged directly to the bristles of the toothbrush.

It is a feature of my toothbrush to provide an article of simple construction and wherein there are only two major parts, namely, the hollow handle which forms the fountain for the liquid dentifrice, and the end of the brush which supports the bristles. These two parts are connected by a small passageway leading from the hollow handle and extending through the front portion which supports the bristles of the toothbrush. By using a small passageway without any valve mechanism, I provide a very simple construction and the liquid dentifrice will not leak out toward the bristles even though the brush is held with the bristles in a downward direction. The reason for this is because the passageway is small and the liquid dentifrice must be pumped through this passageway and the air which replaces the liquid dentifrice must come back through this small passageway leading from the bristles to the fountain. This is an important feature of my toothbrush.

It is also a feature to provide a toothbrush wherein the cross-sectional shape of the handle which forms the fountain for the liquid dentifrice is such that when the handle is grasped and squeezed in one direction, that is the direction of engagement which the hand assumes when holding the brush to brush the teeth, no effect is caused on the discharge of the liquid from the fountain handle; while the cross-sectional shape of the brush, together with the area provided in an opposite direction to that of gripping the brush when brushing the teeth permits the sides of the brush to be squeezed toward each other and thus causes an impulse against the liquid in the handle, forcing the liquid to the bristles of the brush. Further, the cross-sectional design and shape of my brush is such that when the brush is squeezed in one transverse direction, it has a tendency to draw in air through the small passageway of the front end of the brush and that is the direction of the force of gripping the brush whilebrushing the teeth.

I also provide a split valve of a simple disc formation having a small slit in the same which acts to close the lower end of the fountain while the outer end of the same is opened to fill the brush where it is desirable to have the opening for filling the handle at the outer rear end of the same. Where the brush is made in two parts and is divided at a point between the bristles and the fountain handle, this valve is not necessary as will appear.

The features of primary importance reside in the simplicity of my toothbrush and wherein the same can be molded of a plastic material requiring only the two parts, namely, the hollow handle for the liquid dentifrice which is constructed in a peculiar manner so-that it will not collapse under pressure of gripping while brushing the teeth, and the front portion which supports the bristles of the brush. With this simple design I provide a toothbrush for a liquid dentifrice which I believe is very desirable owing to its practical nature and its simple operation with only two parts, giving a toothbrush which can be manufactured virtually as economically as the ordinary toothbrush.

In the drawing forming a part of this specification:

Figure 1 illustrates a side brush.

Figure -2 is a cross-section on the line 2--2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a detail of another design of the handle of my toothbrush.

Figure 4 is a detail of still the handle of my toothbrush.

Figure 5 is a section on the line ure 4.

Figure 6 is a detail of the handle portion, showing an eye formed in the rear end of the handle by which the toothbrush may be hung up.

Figure 7 is a side elevation of another form view of my toothanother design of 5 5 of Figl of my toothbrush where the; same may be filled from the rear end of the same. 7 Figure 8 is a section on the line 8-8 of Figure Figure 9 is a sectional detail of another form of my toothbrush, showing a valve that may be used where the-toothbrush is filled from the rear end like that shown in Figure 7.

Figure 10 is a section on the line III-I of Figure 9.

My toothbrush A is formed with a front portion I0 and a handle portion II. The toothbrush A can be made of plastic material which may be molded into the desired shape. The portion II) is adapted to support the bristles I2 which form the toothbrush and I provide a small longitudinal opening I3 extending from the point I4 adjacent the bristles to the point I5 which connects the passageway I3 with the inner chamber I6 formed in the handle portion II.

The front portion In and handle portion. II are held together by means of the threaded connection I'I so thatthe parts I0 and II may be separated and the part II may be filled in the chamber I6 with a liquid dentifrice.

The handle portion I I being hollow forms the fountain for the liquid dentriflce so as to provide a supply of the same in readiness to be used on tha bristles I2 when it is desired to brush the teeth. The handle portion I I is formed with an enlarged rear end portion I8 and may be of any suitable design so far as the outward appearance of the same is concerned.

The enlarged portion I8 provides a greater area in the oval portion indicated by the dotted lines I9. The portion I9 provides a flexible side wall which may be engaged between the fingers so that when the bristles I2 are held in a downward direction and the area indicated by the oval I9 is pinched by the fingers of the operator, the dentrifice within the chamber I6 of the handle II is adapted to be pumped out through the opening I3 to the bristles I2. The side-walls extend longitudinally of the handle II, the handle being more or less of a rectangular crosssectional shape as illustrated in Figure 2, throughout its length, and thus the handle II is formed with the side walls 2|] and the top and bottom walls 2|.

The handle portion II of the toothbrush A may be connected to the portion ID by a smooth tapered surface without threads so as to secure the two parts together, and the head of the toothbrush may be in any relative position in relation to the fountain handle. Thus the bristles may be in line with the walls 2I as illustrated in the drawing or may be extended in line with the surfaces or walls 20. The difference in the air pressure on the opposite ends of the liquid holds the liquid in the handle until the area I9 is squeezed to force the liquid out to the bristles I2.

The thickness of the walls 2| may be greater than the thickness of the walls 20 in the area indicated by the oval portion. I9. However, by pinching the comparatively wide side walls 20 particularly at the enlarged area I9, it will be apparent that the side walls will flex inwardly as indicated in dotted lines in Figure 2, and thus put pressure upon the liquid dentrifice within the chamber I6 and force the same out of the small passageway I3. Any squeezing pressure against the sides 2| has a tendency to bulge the side walls 20 outwardly, thus increasing the area opening which prevents the liquid dentifrice from running out either by gravity or when shaking the water off of the bristles I2. Thus the liquid dentifrice within the chamber I6 cannot be accidentally discharged or run out of the handle I I but must be virtually pumped out by manipulating or flexing the side walls 20 at the area I9. With this peculiar construction of my toothbrush, I have made it possible to make the brush in only two parts, Ill and II, there being no necessity for any valves or plungers to operate the dentifrice from the fountain handle II to the bristles I2. This simplifies the construction for manufacture and permits the brush to be made at a reasonable cost so that it may be offered to the-trade at an equally reasonable price.

Figure 3 illustrates a portion of the handle II with a slightly different design in the rear formation of the handle.

Figures 4 and 5 illustrate the handle II showing an internal reinforcing rib 22 which extends longitudinally along one of the side walls 20 and is adapted to form a stop or shoulder to limit the inward flexing movement of the portion I9 as illustrated in dotted outline in Figure 5.

Figure 6 illustrates the handle II, showing an eye 23 formed inthe rear end of the handle II so that the brush A may be hung on a hook when not in use.

The toothbrush A illustrated in Figure 7 shows the handle portion II formed integral with the brush portion I0 and in place of separating the handle from the portion III to fill the chamber I6, I provide a plug 24 in the rear end of the handle which may be removed to fill the chamber I6 with the liquid dentifrice. The cross-sec tional shape of the handle I I of the construction shown in Figure '7 is oval instead of rectangular, so that the compartment I6 is oval in cross-sectional shape. This oval-shaped handle provides a very desirable formation because it provides the rigdity to the handle body which will not be compressed while the toothbrush is being used to brush the teeth, and yet by squeezing on the side walls 20, the liquid dentifrice may be forced out to the bristles I2. In this construction shown in Figure 7, the passageway I3 is shorter so that the opening I4 is exposed a short distance from the bristles I2. I provide this construction so that when the brush A, shown in Figure 7, is filled, ones finger can be placed over the opening I4 to prevent the liquid dentifrice from running out of the passageway I3 until the plug 24 is replaced to close the rear end of the toothbrush handle II.

I have illustrated in Figures 9 and 10 a rubber disc valve 25 which may be placed in the inner end of the chamber I 5 to normally close the same. This valve may be used when a plug such as 24 is used. The valve 25 is normally closed and is provided with a slit 26 which remains closed while filling the handle I I, and yet which may be opened by the pressure on the side walls of the handle so as to force the liquid dentifrice out of the chamber I6 through the passageway I3 to the bristles I2. When the valve 25 is used, it is not necessary to hold ones flnger over the opening I4 when filling the handle II. In other words, the handle II, as shown in Figure 1, may be made with a plug like 24 shown in Figure 7 at the rear end of the handle so that it is not necessary to unscrew the parts I0 and II to fill the handle I I.

It is apparent that any obvious changes may be made within the scope of the following claims without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. In combination, a toothbrush portion having a shank, a shoulder on said shank, an axial longitudinal passage through said shank extending to the bristles, a separable handle portion adapted to form a reservoir for dentifrice and having a substantially rectangular transverse cross-sectional formation and formed with channel leading to the bristles thereof, said hollow handle constituting a reservoir for a dentifrice and having the forward end thereof open, and means detachably securing said brush head to the open end of said hollow handle, said resilient wall portion being adapted to feed dentifrice from said reservoir to said bristles when pressed by the hand of the user of the toothbrush.

3. A fountain toothbrush comprising a brush head and a hollow plastic handle therefor, said handle comprising rigid relatively thick wall portions and oppositely-disposed thinner resilient wall portions, said brush head having a 15 channel leading to the bristles thereof, 'said handle constituting a reservoir for a dentifrice and having the forward end thereof open, said brush head being detachably secured to the open end of said handle, and said resilient wall por- 20 tions adapted to feed dentifrice from said reservoir to said bristles when pressed by the hand of a user.

GEORGE ULVICK. 

